[Cold constitution: analysis of the questionnaire]

"Hie-sho" means having a cold constitution. The authors studied basic data for cold constitution with a questionnaire and with the Cornell Medical Index. The subjects were 318 females, and the average age was 26.4 +/- 6.1 (Mean +/- SD) and the range was 20 approximately 51 years of age. The results were as follows: (1) 38.7% of the subjects had been conscious of having a cold constitution, and it was recognized that the subjects with a cold constitution are found not only in the climacterium but also in the young. (2) The average age of onset of cold constitution was 19.3 +/- 5.1 years old. (3) The parts of the body that usually felt cold were first the feet and then the hands. (4) In winter or at bedtime the cold sensation was increased. And it is characteristic that the sensation was changed by weather or by body condition, especially by the stimulation of coldness. (5) Most subjects with a cold constitution took care in their daily life, but very few of them were treated. (6) Many other physical symptoms were recognized in subjects with a cold constitution, and their CMI scores were high. Therefore these data may be regarded as indicating that most cases of cold constitution are a partial symptom of vegetative disturbance (autonomic nerve dysfunction). (7) Most of the mothers of subjects with a cold constitution also had a cold constitution, which suggests the involvement of a hereditary factor concerning in the development of a cold constitution.